Drop-In

Castle Garden Emigrant Depot: Before Ellis

National Park Service

Financial District, Manhattan

Credit: NPS Photo

Sat, October 18th, 2025

10:00am — 2:00pm

Sun, October 19th, 2025

10:00am — 2:00pm

Join the National Park Service inside Castle Clinton for a special tour of the nation's first immigrant processing center, Castle Garden Emigrant Depot. For 35 years, from 1855 to 1890, eight million immigrants entering the Port of New York were processed at an immigration center on the tip of Manhattan. Using long-forgotten images and stories from the building's history, NPS Rangers will bring to life immigration to New York in the 19th century and explore how decisions made during the Castle Garden era continue to shape our perceptions today.

Saturday & Sunday Tours: 10 am, 12, and 2 pm

Rangers will be on site to give first-come, first-served tours that include images and stories of the site when it operated as an immigration center. Tours are one hour each.

Castle Clinton is located inside Battery Park and is wheelchair accessible. There is no direct access to Castle Clinton from the street and visitors will need to walk about a quarter of a mile through the park to visit the site.

1811: Jonathan Williams

Battery Park City, Manhattan
Financial District, Manhattan
Governors Island, Manhattan
Governors Island, Manhattan